112 AIPS countries voted: Real Madrid the Best Team of 2017 and IAAF World Championships the Best Press Facility

Real Madrid lift the 12 Champions League trophy in their history in the Final in Cardiff. (Photo: UEFA/Getty Images)

by Sonja Nikcevic, AIPS Media

LAUSANNE, December 29, 2017 – World,
European and La Liga Champions Real Madrid CF were voted the Best Team after a record-breaking
2016/2017 season and the unique award for the Best Press Facility went to the
facilities and personnel of IAAF World Championships London 2017 : this is the
result of the most international poll yet by the International Sports Press
Association (AIPS), with a panel of 517 journalists from 112 countries having
voted for the Champions of 2017.

The AIPS Best Male and Female Athletes of 2017
will be announced later in the day.

BEST TEAM OF 2017

In a season of record-breaking dominance, Real
Madrid were crowned champions of Spain after a five-year wait, and made history
by becoming the first team in the European-League era to defend the Champions
League trophy, after beating Juventus 4-1 in a superior final display.

These were the two crown jewels in a calendar
year that saw the team led by Zinedine Zidane win three more trophies – a record
even by Real Madrid’s own impossible standards – and inspire the footballing
world and members of the media alike, earning the majority of votes from our
international panel.

The La Liga giants won the Spanish Super
Cup against Barcelona, the UEFA Super Cup over Manchester United, and the FIFA
Club World Cup earlier this month in Abu Dhabi. The win over Brazilian club
Gremio, also means they are the club with the most World Cups with six,
counting the previous Intercontinental Cup along with the current FIFA version
of the trophy.

What seemed to inspire so many about Real
Madrid however, was not just the fantastic feats of Cristiano Ronaldo, whose
decisive performances brought him a 5th Ballon d’Or in 2017, but also
system of exciting young Spanish players performing alongside record signings.

Real Madrid were dominant in Best Team poll
as well, receiving a total of 1096 votes, followed by the German national
football team who proved their versatility and reserve of talent by winning the
FIFA Confederations Cup with 738 votes, and NBA Champions Golden State Warriors
broke into the football dominance with 601 votes in third place.

1 - Real Madrid CF - football 1096 (23.55%)

2 - Germany Men's National Team -
football 738 (15.86%)

3 - Golden State Warriors - basketball 601
(12.92%)

4 - Slovenia
National Team - Men - basketball 412
(8.85%)

5 -
France Davis Cup Team – tennis 333
(7.16%)

6 -
Netherlands National Team - Women – football 288 (6.19%)

7 -
France National Team - Men - handball 288
(6.19%)

8 -
England National Team - Men - rugby 227
(4.88%)

9 -
Croatia National Team - Men - water polo 189
(4.06%)

10 -
Russia National Team - Men - volleyball 166
(3.57%)

BEST PRESS FACILITY 2017

In one of the closest AIPS polls to date,
the press facilities of the IAAF World Championships London 2017 were crowned
the best of 2017 by the members of the international media, ahead of the facilities
of the UEFA Champions League Final and the FINA 2017 World Aquatics
Championships in Budapest.

The IAAF World Championships in London were
in the sporting spotlight of 2017 as the legendary Usain Bolt ran his very last
race and bid farewell to the track in an emotional goodbye that also saw the tremendous
London crowds bid goodbye to their very own Mo Farah. The event also was also awarded a Guinness World Record for tickets sold in excess of 705,000.

London 2017 saw 3,300 athletes from more
than 200 nations competing in 30 sessions across 20 days in both the IAAF World
Championships and Para-World Championships held at London’s iconic Queen
Elizabeth Park, the home of the 2012 Olympic Games, which included a vast media
center and tribune, and support for journalists and photographers.

Justin Gatlin is interviewed by the media at London Stadium after beating Usain Bolt in the final of the 100m. (Photo: IAAF)

London 2017 attracted a record number of over
2800 members of the media: 968 written press and photographers, 63 non-rights holders, and 1770 national broadcasters and rights-holders.

The event received a total of 666 votes,
followed by the press facilities of the 2017 UEFA Champions League final the
annual pinnacle of club football, with 582 votes. Only 142 votes separated the
top three Press facilities as voted by the international media, with the highly
commended FINA World Aquatics Championships in Budapest that attracted over 680
journalists and photographers, in third place with 524 votes.

1 - IAAF World Championships London 2017 666 (14.31%)

2 - 2017 UEFA Champions League final 582
(12.51%)

3 - FINA 2017 World Aquatics Championships 524 (11.26%)

4 - 2017 Wimbledon Championships 497 (10.68%)

5 - FIFA Confederations Cup Russia 2017 386 (8.3%)

6 - Tour de France 2017 289 (6.21%)

7 - 2016-17 EHF Champions League 228 (4.9%)

8 - FIBA EuroBasket 2017 223 (4.79%)

9 - Judo World Senior Championship 2017 203 (4.36%)

10 - 2017 Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games 179 (3.85%)

AIPS members from the following nations participated
in the Best of 2017 poll: